Chapter 77: I Was Left Alone

The showcase was suddenly just three days away.

Summarizing the past two weeks’ schedule…

“Hmm. We practiced.”

“And we practiced, right?”

“I think we practiced… next time we practiced, I guess?”

“Wow, this is fun!”

That was roughly the situation.

Watching the members turning into living zombies, Kang Siwoo felt urgent measures were needed.

To become a freshly bitten lively zombie, not a lifeless dead‑eye one, sometimes ventilation is necessary.

Once promotions start, things would get seriously busier.

The members agreed to enjoy one final break.

Kang Siwoo cautiously opened the topic.

“Seongbin hyung went through a lot emotionally… and since we’ve all been working hard together… today, could we maybe sneak out and grab something to eat?”

“Can’t we just raid the convenience store?”

Seohan’s shy voice piped up—he’d said during trainee days that it was his dream.

“You did it all the time.”

Of course, that shy pretense was ripped away by Jin Seyhyun’s exposure.

Seohan coughed and waved his hand dismissively.

“No, what are you talking about?”

“You were rushing into convenience stores even during the Starf shoot… ah!”

Seohan’s punishment for a perfect crime followed, but it was meaningless flailing.

Jin Seyhyun, easily slipping out of Seohan’s grip, shrugged his shoulders and added.

“In any case, I’m in favor.”

Unlike Seohan, whose FM tag gave subtle excitement at this deviation,…

On the other hand, Cha Seongbin, having recovered his mental state, burst into a hearty laugh and said.

“How about we go hard with some spicy chicken ramen?”

That seemed like he was deliberately projecting a cool front, which bothered me—but anyway, he looked okay today, so that’d be fine.

Ha Junseo clapped his hands crisply and smiled wide.

“Let’s casually get some ramen and a hot bar, and also some drinks and snacks.”

“Oh, that menu’s not bad.”

“If we care about calories, zero‑cola…?”

“Junseo hyung, after saying we’re going all out with ramen and hot bars, does zero‑cola even matter?”

“That’s my last shred of conscience.”

Kang Siwoo gathered the members’ opinions and pointed outside the practice room.

“I heard from Junseo hyung that around this time, the manager seldom comes by. If we quietly go down the hallway stairs… we’ll probably be less likely to get caught…”

This route was arranged using advice from Doubles‑former Ha Junseo.

Kang Siwoo sprang up and exchanged glances.

“Shall we head out right now, then?”

If swelling sets in the day before the showcase, it’d be a disaster.

If we’re doing it, might as well do it today.

Perfect timing for a midnight snack.

The members’ eyes glittered, and they jumped up in a buzz.

“Let’s go.”

“Let’s go!”

“Eek!”

“Oh, I got nervous for nothing.”

“No one saw us, right?”

“I told you. I’ve done this a lot—I know this won’t get caught.”

From the practice room, we tiptoed down the hallway stairs, and surprisingly, we didn’t run into any staff.

Given the time, we didn’t meet anyone we suspected of being staff even at the convenience store in front of the company.

Does this kind of easy deviation even exist?

The members carried armfuls of snacks and hurried onward.

Behind them,

Cha Seongbin slowly walked after his juniors, black plastic bag rustling.

A pitch‑dark alley.

A soft streetlamp light shone above my head.

Cha Seongbin trudged along, breathing in the still cool air in one gulp.

The refreshing sensation struck deep in his lungs.

Just a few days ago, every inhale felt suffocating.

Now, it felt a little easier.

Probably because of…

‘Those reliable guys.’

When the anonymous account controversy erupted, the members stood by me, bravely believing in me.

Trusting your team—I know how cliché that sounds, but… in reality, it was quite an ideal story.

A project group formed for less than three months.

Between those who survived a survival show where everyone fended for themselves, what sort of tight bonds would there be?

Even if they didn’t trust me, Cha Seongbin had no right to complain.

I was the member with nothing but controversies. I had no right to expect anyone to embrace me.

That’s what I thought.

But then.

‘Maybe I had more luck with people than I thought.’

Members who stepped into this complicated matter as if it were their own.

Even our youngest who used family‑connection to get an apology letter.

Cha Seongbin felt thankful and grew certain.

Ah.

Still, I could endure.

No matter what happened, I wouldn’t collapse.

‘Because of you guys.’

I—just a tiny speck in the universe—could shine.

Trudging along…

Lost in such sentimental thoughts, my pace slowed, when Seohan quietly approached from behind.

The streetlamp light revealed Seohan’s face, casting a shadow.

“Honestly, hyung, it was hard, right?”

“Huh?”

At that one blunt question, Cha Seongbin’s eyes widened briefly.

The prime mover behind this anonymous‑account scandal: Do Seohan.

He couldn’t lie to the youngest.

Cha Seongbin stretched and answered slyly.

“It was a hellish struggle, yeah. Both physically and mentally.”

‘Where did gaudy Cha Seongbin go?’

Cha Seongbin thought internally, but smirked.

He didn’t mind younger members jumping in at this moment.

“Hot bars are supposed to be good for stress, right?”

“Let’s eat something tasty and blow it all away.”

“You really held up well. Good job, Seongbin.”

Ha Junseo lightly tapped my slightly drooping shoulder and smiled.

Cha Seongbin smiled along with him and thought to himself.

‘I really love these members.’

People who would make sure no one falls behind until the very end.

When I look at these harmless people,

Ah, my heart feels warm.

It really warms my heart…

“Gasp, it’s the manager!”

“Crap.”

“Hey, run!”

Huh?

Dash—

Through the afterimages of scattering members, a familiar silhouette entered my view.

Cha Seongbin widened his eyes once he recognized the figure.

“Ah…”

From the far end of the alley, Song Jinha from the rookie development team was walking with an unfamiliar man.

He was saved in Cha Seongbin’s database as the scariest person from Doubles.

We must not get caught.

Cha Seongbin instinctively turned his head and shouted loudly.

“Guys, ru—”

But.

Something felt strangely empty.

Where… did everyone go?

“……”

The younger members who had been comforting me so warmly were gone, and only Song Jinha remained.

Huh.

Cha Seongbin blinked and muttered softly.

“Guys…”

So much for warmth.

“You’re really leaving your hyung behind?”

“This is the manager who will be working with you.”

A sturdy build, easily over 185 cm tall.

The man with bold, strong features standing next to Song Jinha turned out to be Stardust’s new manager, Lee Jaeyoon.

Until now, a temporary manager had accompanied Stardust’s schedule in their place,

But now, a formal manager was assigned to work with Stardust.

Everything was fine except…

“Ah, hello.”

Why did it have to be this kind of first meeting?

Caught while eating ice cream and dragged in—it was hard to know what to say first.

Ha Junseo gave an awkward smile and jumped in to shield the members.

“They’re going through their growth phase… haha.”

“Haven’t all of them passed that phase except Seohan?”

Everyone shut their mouths at Song Jinha’s remark.

Gulp.

“It’s okay. They say you can grow until 21.”

“Thank you!”

“They say you can grow sideways too.”

“……”

He was scary during trainee days, but maybe because we’re about to debut, he didn’t scold us further, thankfully.

Song Jinha clicked his tongue a few times and added,

“I trust you guys, but if you want to go out, get the manager’s permission instead. Don’t cause trouble anywhere.”

“Yes, understood!”

“We’ll be careful!”

Phew.

That smoothed over better than expected.

Seohan nodded to himself, patting his chest mentally.

Bang—

After saying his piece, Song Jinha closed the door and left,

Leaving only the new manager and new members in the practice room…

And so began a very awkward first meeting.

“So…”

“Hmm.”

Kang Siwoo, sensing the tension, awkwardly turned toward Lee Jaeyoon.

‘Kinda scary.’

He himself had a pretty strong look, but Lee Jaeyoon had a different kind of untouchable aura.

That back was as broad as the sea—his build made one wonder if he was a bodyguard rather than a manager.

So it wasn’t his expression but the aura from that build that was intense.

Didn’t feel like someone we could easily approach. Better to stay polite.

Three, two, one.

Kang Siwoo recited the newly established official Stardust greeting.

“Let me introduce ourselves properly. Hello, we’re Stardust…”

But.

“…!”

Whoosh—

Manager Lee Jaeyoon, who had been standing still, suddenly turned and walked out.

The members, who were bowing with their heads at 70 degrees, froze on the spot.

“Did we get on his bad side?”

“Scary from day one.”

“Ugh… guess we did.”

Sure, we were caught sneaking to a convenience store, but we didn’t expect him to leave without even acknowledging us.

His aura resembled Kang Siwoo’s, which somehow made him even scarier.

While Seohan nervously swallowed,

Crash—

Manager Lee Jaeyoon suddenly returned.

With both hands full of something.

And in those hands…

“Hot bars?”

Manager Lee Jaeyoon, holding steaming hot bars fresh from the microwave, spoke calmly.

“Since you already bought them, might as well heat them up and eat.”

For a moment, everyone’s brains froze.

The first to recover was Ha Junseo.

“Th-Thank you!”

“Oh, thank you!”

“We’ll eat well!”

Dash—

All the members rushed forward and gratefully received the hot bars filling both his hands.

As their eyes met, the members exchanged brief, meaningful glances.

‘He’s a good guy.’

‘He’s really kind.’

Seohan also nodded, thinking the same.

‘Is he an angel?’

There’s no way someone who gives food could be a bad person.

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